Before the first quote comes in, a little homework on your own roof, bills, and goals will save weeks of back-and-forth with installers later. Here are the five things worth settling first.
1. Know your actual usage, not your bill total
Pull twelve months of kWh usage from your utility account, not just the dollar amount. Usage tells an installer how to size the system; the bill total just tells them what you currently pay.
2. Check your roof before your panels
A roof with 10+ years of remaining life is worth solar; one due for replacement in the next few years should be re-roofed first to avoid paying to remove and reinstall panels later.
3. Understand your utility’s export rules
Net metering, net billing, and time-of-use export rates all change the math differently. Ask installers to model your bill under your actual utility’s current rules, not a generic estimate.
4. Get at least three quotes, apples to apples
Compare quotes on panel wattage, inverter type, warranty length, and monitoring — not just the total price. A cheaper number often means a smaller or lower-tier system.
5. Ask about permitting and interconnection timelines
Installation day is rarely the finish line. Permitting and utility interconnection can add weeks; ask each installer for their typical timeline from contract to permission-to-operate.
The homeowners happiest with their system are the ones who understood their own usage and roof before they ever took a call from an installer.